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Friday, June 12, 2015

Maifeld Derby

We may be the only people who drank coffee to avoid crashing during a Brand New set.

Brand New

May 23, 2015

The past few years I've spent a fair bit of time at concerts and typically go no more than 3-4 months without attending a show. Due to being in Germany and travelling often, it had been 8 months since I'd been to a proper gig and I was dying for some quality live music. When I found out Mannheim had its own spring music festival with bands I actually knew I jumped at the chance to go and brought CB along for company. Maifeld Derby, named for its location at Mannheim's derby tracks, is a small affair, attracting only a few thousand visitors and some small indie and local bands, making for an intimate atmosphere. I was most excited to see Aurora, an adorable Norwegian pop artist, and Brand New, the band encapsulating the American college student's teenage years. Despite the relatively small festival crowd Aurora was visibly surprised as the number of people that showed up to her set and gave an absolutely incredible performance. Even her studio songs that I don't like sounded amazing live. Brand New dived straight into a high energy session and gave the craziest performance I've seen since Foxy Shazam. The crowd had been pretty restrained until then but turned into a mosh pit the moment the band played their first note. It was interesting observing the differences between American and German venues. At Maifeld Derby we were allowed to bring in outside foods and drinks, and it seemed to be a common thing to bring in a liter of "juice" (alcohol) with a homemade duct tape strap for easy transportation. Additionally, the food sold at the venue was actually good. Instead of the mediocre hamburger/hot dog variety found in the States, the vendors sold Currywurst, Thai takeaway, and Handbrot, along with a special counter for coffee and cake. Overall it was a fantastic day - good food and great bands - and I was ecstatic to finally see some live bands again.